A 68-year-old German pensioner has been charged with drugging and raping 14 women he met through online dating platforms and filming the attacks. The public prosecutor's office in Berlin confirmed the suspect faces 22 counts of aggravated rape involving 14 women, but investigators believe he may have raped a total of 58 women.
Allegations and Investigation
The suspect is accused of meeting women online, then plying them with alcohol and sedatives before raping them. Police began investigating after he appeared in chat logs with another man under investigation, who has since died. A house search and seizure of devices led forensic specialists to discover videos revealing sexual offences.
Investigators have identified 30 of the 58 women seen in the videos. None of those contacted recalled the alleged attacks and only learned of them when shown the footage. The identities of another 10 women remain unknown.
Legal Hurdles
Prosecutors announced they had to drop charges involving 36 alleged instances of rape against a single woman between 2010 and 2014. Under German law, many rape cases fall under a five-year statute of limitations. Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig has urged extending this limit to 20 years.
The 22 counts of aggravated rape the suspect does face involve the use of force and are subject to a 20-year statute of limitations. Two years ago, Germany's highest court ruled that date-rape drugs added to a drink were not classified as 'dangerous items' in the context of sexual assault, meaning the minimum sentence was three years, according to the justice minister.
Proposed Legal Reforms
Hubig is pushing for a law change so that anyone convicted of using date-rape drugs to commit rape or robbery faces a minimum of five years in jail. The government has said that in future, 'all dangerous items and substances used while a sexual offence or robbery is committed' will be listed alongside any other weapon or dangerous implement.
A judge commented that 'sexual offences are no longer committed silently and in secret, but are publicly shared on the internet and applauded.'
